Hockey world fondly remembers former Yale coach Taylor

Updated 12:11 am, Monday, April 29, 2013

Word filtered out Saturday night that former Yale hockey coach Tim Taylor, prominent in United States hockey history for decades, had died at 71. Twitter quickly lit up with condolences and appreciations from players, coaches, staffers and administrators, young and old.

As they had during Taylor's life, they described him as a nice man, a classy guy, a great hockey mind.

"And it's all the truth," Dave Baseggio said late Saturday. "As great a hockey guy, he was an even better individual. A good man."

Taylor coached 28 seasons at Yale before the school let him go in 2006. He sent numerous players on to pro hockey, including Baseggio, former coach of the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, who's now the Anaheim Ducks' director of pro scouting.

He compiled a record of 337-433-55, winning the 1997-98 ECAC regular-season championship. Keith Allain, one of his former players, took over the program, which won its first NCAA championship earlier this month.

"It was fitting that he got to see a program he put so much energy into for so many years win the NCAA hockey championship just a couple of weeks ago," Dave Ogrean, executive director of USA Hockey and a Connecticut native, said in a statement.

"He was a wonderful human being and our sport was fortunate to be the benefactor of his love of the game."

Taylor received two leaves from Yale to coach at the Olympics, serving as an assistant to Lou Vairo in 1984 and as head coach in 1994. He was on the staff for numerous other international tournaments.

After leaving Yale, he was an assistant with the National Team Development Program; he was also director of player personnel for the junior national team, which has won two golds and a bronze in the past four World Junior Championships. Taylor was in Russia in January to watch the United States win gold; USA Hockey had video on its website Saturday of him receiving his medal.

Baseggio said he'd remember Taylor's passion for hockey and the kind of student of the game he was, but also the way he cared about his players as individuals.